1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a window blind and more particularly, to a fabric blind slat for the window blind.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various blinds for covering windows are known. These window blinds include Venetian blinds, pleated blinds, roller shades, Roman shades, honeycomb shades, etc. Conventionally, a window blind may be comprised of a plurality of separated blind slats that can be tilted to regulate the light, or a series of blind slats that can be lifted/lowered to regulate the light. These window blinds commonly use blind slats to control shading of incident light.
Currently, wood, plastic, metal and compound materials are commonly used to make blind slats. Material selection is determined subject to many factors including light transmitting rate, durability, weight, and price. Fabric materials may be used for making blind slats for a window blind for the advantage of their aesthetic appearance. However, fabric blind slats have the drawback of easy to sag. In order to eliminate sagging of fabric blind slats, U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,506 discloses a fabric blind slat, which comprises an elongated strip of fabric characterized in that the strip of fabric has at least one longitudinally extending pocket on a longitudinal edge into which a relatively rigid support member is insertable. The longitudinal extending pocket is integrally formed with the strip and, in cross section, has a seamless endless periphery. According to this design, the pocket must be stiff so as to define a longitudinal extending space for the insertion of the rigid support member. (According to experience, if the pocket is made soft, the insertion of the rigid rod member into the pocket will be difficult and complicated such that the manufacturing cost will be relatively increased). To have this stiff fabric property, the pocket must be made by shuttle weaving. Because the pocket and the elongated strip of fabric are made in integrity, the elongated strip of fabric must be shuttle-weaving fabric. Shuttle-weaving fabric has a high density, however it is easy to wrinkle. Due to poor wrinkle-resistant material property, the aforesaid fabric blind slat starts to wrinkle quickly with use or after washing. When the fabric blind slat wrinkled, the sense of beauty of the fabric material is destroyed. The wrinkles of the fabric blind slat affect passing of incident light into the inside of the house. Further, shuttle-weaving fabric has low tear-resistance. When washed with force, the fabric blind slat may be torn easily. When damaged, the fabric blind slat must be replaced, causing inconvenience.